Apple Buyers Defend Smartphone, Watch Monopoly Case

By Matthew Perlman

Groups of buyers accusing Apple of monopolizing smartphone and smartwatch markets told a New Jersey federal court the multidistrict litigation concerns the same allegations that recently survived dismissal in a government action.

3 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

'No Evidence' New Info Backs J&J Unit's Libel Suit, Court Told

By George Woolston

A doctor being sued by Johnson & Johnson's bankrupt talc subsidiary pushed back on the unit's bid to revive its trade libel claim over a scientific article she wrote linking asbestos in talc to mesothelioma, arguing it failed to cite any evidence that undermines the court's finding that the article was a nonactionable statement of scientific opinion.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Bausch Health Financial Stability Suit Permanently Dismissed

By Katryna Perera

A New Jersey federal judge has dismissed for good a class action against Bausch Health Cos. Inc. and its top brass over claims that they misled shareholders about threats to the company's financial stability, finding that the second amended complaint includes inactionable challenged statements and fails to state a claim.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Court Ends Consent Decree Between DOJ And Newark Police

By Marco Poggio

The New Jersey federal court has terminated a nine-year, legally binding agreement between the U.S. Department of Justice and the City of Newark stemming from a pattern of unlawful stop-and-frisks and excessive-force practices by the Newark Police Department, the Justice Department said Friday.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Ruger's $1.5M Data Breach Deal Heads For Final OK

By Brian Steele

A proposed class of data breach victims has asked a federal judge to issue final approval of a $1.5 million settlement with Connecticut-based gunmaker Sturm, Ruger & Co. and a New Jersey web developer, along with $500,000 in fees to attorneys with four firms including Siri & Glimstad LLP.

Settlement attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Cannabis Co. Drops Rival From Trade Secrets Suit

By Jonathan Capriel

New Jersey cannabis products maker Kushi Labs LLC will continue its federal lawsuit against ex-employees it claims stole confidential trade secrets, but it has agreed to drop claims against the rival manufacturer for which the workers left Kushi.

1 document attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

NJ Experts Warn Of Evolving AI Pitfalls At Bar Symposium

By Jake Maher

Lawyers today are facing new and more nuanced ethical challenges around the use of artificial intelligence at the same time that the penalties for misusing AI are growing more severe, New Jersey experts warn.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Roundup

Real Estate Recap: REIT Reporting, Defining Water

By Real Estate Authority Staff

Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including reactions from real estate attorneys in two areas primed for deregulation.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

3rd Circ. Rejects Boy Scout Abuse Claimants' Fee Requests

By Carla Baranauckas

The Third Circuit on Friday backed the denial of $21 million in counsel fees to the Coalition of Abused Scouts for Justice as tort claimants in the Boy Scouts of America's bankruptcy case, ruling that the organization was not a creditor entitled to recoup money from the estate.

Opinion attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

3rd Circ. Panel Will Rethink Solar Panels Fraud Suit Dismissal

By Carla Baranauckas

The Third Circuit granted a panel rehearing Friday for an elderly New Jersey woman who accused two solar panel financiers of saddling her with a nearly $100,000 debt after she was tricked into getting rooftop solar panels she believed would be free.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Opinion

Despite Deputy AG Remarks, DOJ Can't Sideline DC Bar

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s recent suggestion that the D.C. Bar would be prevented from reviewing misconduct complaints about U.S. Department of Justice attorneys runs contrary to federal statutes, local rules and decades of case law, and sends the troubling message that federal prosecutors are subject to different rules, say attorneys at HWG.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Bonus Spotlight

5 BigLaw Firms Match Prevailing Year-End, Special Bonuses

By Anna Sanders

BigLaw continues to dole out extra cash for attorneys just in time for the holidays, with five more firms matching the year-end and special bonuses previously announced by their peers.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feds' Claim Against Judge Weighing Trans Troops Ban Tossed

By Lauren Berg

The D.C. Circuit's chief judge tossed the U.S. Department of Justice's misconduct complaint against the federal judge overseeing litigation challenging the Trump administration's ban on transgender troops serving in the military, saying judicial misconduct proceedings are not the appropriate avenue to address concerns about a judge's impartiality.

Order attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Comey, James Defeat Charges Over Halligan's Appointment

By Ryan Boysen

A federal judge on Monday dismissed the headline-grabbing indictments of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, finding the controversial prosecutor handling both cases was not properly appointed.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Calif. Personal Injury Law Firm Sued Over Ransomware Attack

By Gina Kim

A former Adamson Ahdoot LLP client lodged a proposed class action in California state court on Friday over a Nov. 3 ransomware attack, alleging the law firm failed to protect his personal information despite touting on its website that it follows industry standards to do so.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Feature

Prep, Panic & Poise: Inside An Associate's First Oral Argument

By Jeff Overley

Fraser M. Holmes followed a long professional path to a Texas court's lectern. He'd been a baseball blogger, travel writer and social studies teacher before appellate law beckoned. After years of toil, a milestone moment — his first oral argument — finally arrived, but as justices took the bench, his heart sank: "Oh, my God. I think I've just forgotten my entire argument."

Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Google Calls Rumble's Recusal Bid Irrelevant To Its Appeal

By Andrea Keckley

Google is urging the Ninth Circuit to disregard concerns Rumble has raised about the trial judge's relationship with the tech giant's litigation vice president, saying Friday that the information is irrelevant to the YouTube rival's appeal of the court's ruling that its antitrust lawsuit was filed too late.

Response attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Oversight Chair Seeks USPTO Briefing On Litigation Funding

By Courtney Bublé

U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is seeking a briefing by the end of the month from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on third-party litigation funding and reforms the agency is working on.

Letter attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

8th Circ. Won't Force Judge's Recusal In Pork Price-Fixing Case

By Matthew Perlman

The Eighth Circuit has denied a mandamus petition from Agri Stats Inc. and major pork producers who are seeking a Minnesota federal judge's recusal in price-fixing litigation based on a law clerk's previous work on a related case.

2 documents attached | Read full article » | Save to favorites »

Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court

By Jarek Rutz

The Delaware Chancery Court last week delivered a packed mix of fraud allegations, merger fallout, corporate-governance reforms and jurisdictional fights, while a new academic report ignited debate over attorney fee awards in Delaware's influential corporate forum.

Read full article » | Save to favorites »